Reddit, Atheism and the Seduction of Knowledge - hubris vs adab (good manners)

I disagree with him. But I have picked his best-looking picture.
I am fair that way. He he he.

DAWKINS. I have written a few postings on Atheism in popular culture. And in pop culture, there is no Atheist more prominent than Richard Dawkins. With his interesting mix of history, prejudices, science and culture, he has been on the wagon trail espousing his profound faith in Atheism. I even bought and read his book, entitled 'The God Delusion', to understand his points of view better.

ATHEISTS AND BELIEVERS. Of course, Atheists and believers sit on different polar of the knowledge spectrum. We believe in the existence of God, while the Atheists believes not in God, but (increasingly) in some alien civilization that visited Earth a while back and proceeded to seed the planet with ingredients to make life, beginning with barely a hint of protein, into a single cell organism before evolving into homo sapiens. The recent movie, Prometheus touches on this theory.

r / atheism in reddit. 

But while we differ, I had hoped that we are actually still sitting on the same spectrum. And that discourse around our differences can actually enliven and entertain. So, with naive optimism I posted one of the earlier Atheism postings on reddit. If you don't know, reddit.com is (I am informed) the number one pusher of internet news, and it is organised into communities. I posted 'Richard Dawkins is not Godless, the Essence of Belief and Disbelief, and a Bagel' (Click Here to read) in the Atheism category. I found the few comments garnered very passionate, although, alas, not very surprising...

Moses dropped by to defend my posting there.

I suppose if I step into the lion's den, I should expect to be chewed on a bit. He he he. I must have looked like a succulent morsel of God-believing goat to them. He he he.

The subscribers to Atheism in Reddit number almost 1 million. And they are very active, and as you can see, quite earnest in their beliefs.

EUGENICS. Like converts to a new faith however, Atheists are not much for talk-back, considering people with religion as not-very-intelligent. Which is kinda sad when you consider that it is knowledge that brought them to where they are now. Or is it actually prejudices? Certainly, I cannot blame the Atheists like Dicky or Bill (Maher) for reacting so strongly against the mad and bad actions of some believers who say that they act on behalf of God Himself. But that is the errors of humanity and not the religion itself. For surely they must admit that one of the more logical and ruthless conclusion of Atheism is eugenics, that now discarded and condemned policy once practised in USA (under the banner of scientific enlightenment) and with horrifying results in Nazi Germany (under the Aryan regime). Eugenics basically means that if Nature's true purpose is to evolve creatures (including Man) to a higher level, then surely, the weak, the dim-witted, the handicapped, the destitute and the criminal class should not be permitted to breed - which led to asylums, prisons, concentration camps, forced sterilization and vasectomies, and ultimately to executions and genocide. This in the name of science and good of mankind.

Yeah. It always sounds like a good idea in the beginning.

But Dawkins will say, "Noooo. They are not true atheists! They are an aberration!" But this is the very same explanation which believers give for nut-head crusaders and fruit-cake jihadis too. That they are not true believers and their terrorism is born from an aberration and confusion in their understanding of faith. So how are we different, and how can we be distinguished?

ADAB. It is good manners, polite discourse and courtly courtesies that distinguishes one person from the other. Knowledge is a seductive power and can lead to hubris. When this happens, the most fair-minded Atheist or believer will sound sanctimonious and condescending. And this is not cool at all.

Wow. I wrote more than I wanted to. Sorry, sunshine!

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way